The question around the Dolphins this week is not really whether Malik Willis has done enough to silence every doubter. It’s whether he should be on the field Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts if his groin still isn’t right.
That’s the real issue, not the growing buzz from fans who want Kyle McCord to get the start in Week 10. And while that idea has plenty of appeal, the case for making a change is tied more to Willis’ health than to any rush to declare the quarterback experiment a failure.
Willis remains Miami’s starter, and that is not expected to change this season. Jeff Hafley made that clear when he spoke to the CBS crew before the Dolphins’ Week 7 game against the New York Jets, backing Willis while also sounding surprised that the question even came up.
That doesn’t mean the criticism is going away. It’s easy to look at the numbers and decide Willis isn’t the answer, but that would be a premature read on a quarterback working with what the source material describes as one of the NFL’s worst supporting casts.
The Dolphins did not bring Willis in to be judged on eight games alone. They brought him in on a deal worth $45 million guaranteed over the next two years to see whether he could become the long-term answer. If he isn’t, the team can keep searching in the 2027 draft, the 2028 draft, or through free agency or the trade market if a high-end veteran becomes available.
That evaluation was never going to be based strictly on stats. It’s supposed to come from moments, plays and situations, and how Willis handles them. And the only opinions that really matter are those of GM Jon-Eric Sullivan, Hafley and the rest of the organization.
There have been flashes. The kind that suggest Willis could be good enough for a contending team once the Dolphins improve the talent around him and some of the young players gain more experience.
Still, the box score from the Detroit game looks rough: 128 passing yards and a 50.1 passer rating. But that doesn’t tell the whole story.
A 51-yard completion to Kevin Coleman Jr. was wiped out by a penalty. Will Kacmarek and Caleb Douglas each dropped passes, one on third down and one on fourth down.
There was also a completion to Douglas that didn’t count because the Lions were offside, and on that snap Willis had immediate pressure, changed his arm angle to get the ball around the blitz and still delivered a strike.
The question becomes how many quarterbacks make that throw.
Willis can be more decisive at times, and the All-22 makes that sound simpler than it is. But he’s also dealing with constant pressure because the pass protection has been leaky.
The injury piece matters too. Against Detroit, Willis appeared to be less than 100 percent, and that may have been the case against New England as well. He showed up on the injury report before the Patriots game because of a groin injury, then had just one rushing attempt that day - a third-and-1 quarterback sneak - after logging eight carries against both the Bengals and the Jets, when he had his best performance of the season.
Willis said after the New England game that nothing was wrong, but the Detroit game told a different story. He looked limited while scrambling, and even one of those runs that should have produced a first down was erased by an Aaron Brewer holding penalty.
If Willis can’t run, the offense loses a major part of what he brings. Based on what Miami has seen so far, he looks like he could be a Jalen Hurts type with more arm talent. And if he ever reaches that level, that would be more than enough, considering Hurts has taken the Eagles to the Super Bowl twice and won one title.
But Willis at less than full strength, stuck mostly as a pocket passer, is a much tougher fit right now, especially with this supporting cast.
So if his groin isn’t fully healed when practice starts this week, Hafley should strongly consider sitting him against Indianapolis so he can get healthy and the evaluation can continue the right way. Hafley declined to get into the severity of the injury Monday, but groin issues usually don’t disappear without time off.
That’s where McCord enters the conversation. Starting him would satisfy a lot of fans who want to see what the trade to Green Bay uncovered, but it would also come with the obvious warning label: he has never played an NFL regular-season snap and is on his third team.
The larger point is simple. Willis deserves more time before anyone stamps him one way or the other. But he also has to be physically capable of playing the way he needs to play.
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